508 Restoration and Design~ Promo/Lifestyle Shoot

“Girl, you got so much swing…I’d put you in the back yard but I wouldn’t let the kids play on you.” This is one of my earliest memories of a 12 year old Nathan shouting from the second story of a friends apartment. I didn’t think Nathan could talk above whisper let alone sling a sarcastic cat call at his youth group leader almost 10 years his elder. That was 1995. Little did I know that Nathan, his brothers, and his parents would become some of the most important people in my life.
Not to be outdone in the memory department, Sarah and I go way back to the mid-nineties as well. As Sarah’s youth group leader we were paired up for discipleship. A painfully shy preteen I showed her the ways of plucking her eyebrows, eating cookie dough at a movie theatre, and straightening her hair. What began as a mentoring relationship 15 years ago blossomed into a friendship of sisterly proportions. We have stood up in each other’s weddings and each welcomed two children into the world. We live just a few blocks away from one another and talk almost daily. Not a shred of awkwardness to be found.

Sarah and Nathan grew up in same town during their junior and high school years. They went to the same church, their families were very close and naturally Sarah and Nathan became very close friends. It wasn’t till their college years, Sarah was off at Virginia Tech and Nathan serving our country in the Army, stationed in Italy, that casual letters of friendship and companionship turned into more romantic undertones. It wasn’t much longer before intentions were clear, this was no friendship any more. A beautiful foundation had been laid for a decade and the two were married just four months after our wedding on New Years Eve 2005. IT. WAS. AN. AWESOME. WEDDING!

Most married couples know the struggle of finding other couples that you BOTH love to be around. In fact it is like finding a unicorn sliding down a rainbow. Not so much with the ole Sarah/Nathan…..Kelly/Ryan combo. PB&J has nothing on us. With creativity, sarcasm, and Jesus yoking us tightly…we dig on the Torrences like a bee digs pollen.

When Sarah and Nathan decided to take a little hobby of refurbishing and repurposing furniture and wood and make a go of selling their work publicly….well….we were 100% on board to support them. This shoot is one of many HUGE steps they are taking to take 508 Restoration to a national level. We wanted to showcase some of their furniture refinishing, decorative repurposing and barnwood art. We also wanted to give them some fun photos for their blog,Etsy shop, publicity and for funsies. It is a mix of all things Sarah and Nathan: rustic, vintage, style, creativity, color, fun and practicality. Without further ado….508 Restoration and Design a.k.a The Torrences!

How amazing are these knobs?

Sarah looks like one tough mamma jamma!

So this shot should have been pretty easy. I mean it looks like it went off without a hitch.

Except that they could not stop laughing at each other. It got so ridiculous especially when Nathan randomly reached up and said he was going to do a “Face Trace” and dragged his finger heavily down the side of her face which cracked all of us up. Public romantic gestures are not particularly a strong point for them, we understand the pressure!

Still not pulling it together.

Got it!

And the money headshots.

This grey beauty was just featured on one of the most well-known design websites around; Design Sponge!

We finished up their shoot at an abandoned house that is part of the Torrence extended family on Torrence land. Someday Nathan and Sarah hope to buy this house and make it a dream fixer upper. For now….we claimed the grounds around it.

I love this shoot, I LOVE THIS SHOOT!!! I know I am biased but I just think Sarah and Nathan are amazing and I am in love with all that they are producing. Please take some time to peruse their blog, shop their etsy and of course leave them some love in the comments section. Their furniture is available for purchase and shipping nationwide (**few exceptions). They also take custom orders or can refinish furniture that you have purchased. I promise you will not be disappointed.

13 Responses

amydjones says:

December 7, 2010 at 7:53 am

i’m seriously interested in buying a print of the first photo listed with the soldiers poem. maybe an 8x10 or 11x14 print.

prob. not til after Christmas, so no pressure, but would be interested to know. hit me up with an email, and let’s discuss.

love you guys!

Sunshine Lewis says:

December 7, 2010 at 8:05 am

I LOVE this!!!.. but, I LOVE all your stuff.. HOWEVER, this one is Freaking AWESOME!!!

You captured both of them beautifully. .
And this just made me want another shoot :)

x

Maria says:

December 7, 2010 at 8:08 am

I was SO excited when I saw that these were up. This was an AMAZING shoot! Nathan and Sarah are gorgeous and totally blew this away. There are so many awesome shots to pick from it is hard to choose a favorite, but I love their head shots, the shot of them holding hands in front of No. 13., and the shots in the field with No. 11. Kudos Ryan and Kelly on another fantastic job well done!!

Thanks Julie,
508 is actually just our street address, exciting I know!
Kelly Ryan you guys are amazing, thanks so much for this. We had a lot of fun and the face trace was pulled out specifically for you guys.

Missy says:

December 7, 2010 at 2:44 pm

These shots are amazing and so is their work. I have found a new obsession… :)